Not You
by tooblondforu
Summary: Lily sees James on a date and she has the most unwelcome feeling of jealousy, which doesn't make sense because she absolutely does NOT like James Potter...does she?


Lily walked out of the snow and into the warmth of the Three Broomsticks. Lily smiled as she heard the low murmur of conversations and the smell of warm butterbeer all ready warming her up. Lily walked over to the bar ordered a butterbeer and then sat down at an empty table.

"— Potter." Lily heard a fourth year Hufflepuff say to her friend.

"No way! It can't be true!" Her friend cried.

"I swear I saw it with my own eyes!" The girl answered severely.

"But what about—" But her friend's voice was cut off as they walked out into the storm.

What had James done now? Lily worried her bottom lip. They had just started a tentative friendship because of their headship and she hoped he hadn't screwed that up. She liked not having screaming matches everyday, she liked how he made Transfiguration easy to understand, she liked going on patrols and laughing the whole four hours, she didn't want to go back to calling him Potter. Lily wasn't blind she had seen how much James had changed this year. He actually took notes in class instead of passing notes, he stopped hexing people randomly and now only hexed Slytherin's that attacked the weaker student, he stopped bragging about himself, the Marauder's now only did funny pranks every now an d then instead of cruel ones everyday, he had even stopped stalking Lily and asking her out every three hours.

In fact Lily had wanted to go to Hogsmeade with James, to work on Head's duties but Hogsmeade Weekend, it had always been a Marauder's thing, no girl allowed. Which is why she never believed him when he asked her out, he only asked because he knew she'd say no. Just then James walked into The Three Broomsticks. Lily's smile brightened as she waved him over, but instead of Black, Remus, and Peter, behind him he had a girl.

She linked arms with James who smiled crookedly at her and dropped her off at a few tables away form Lily's own. Lily studied her; she was in one word beautiful. She had long golden hair, bright blue eyes, tanned gorgeous skin, long legs that went on forever, her lips were full, lashes long and black, and a smile that made her even more devastatingly beautiful. James came back with two butterbeers and sat down. Lily felt something growl in her chest, as if there was a monster begging for her to slap Anna, or to hex so her beautiful face with a million boils, or even to be hexed into oblivion, it wasn't picky. However, all she could do was watch on as if staring at a train wreck, wanting to look away but couldn't.

Lily couldn't hear anything they were saying so she muttered a spell, thanks to Sev, so she could.

The girl put her hands out palm up, and James stared at her weirdly.

"It's a game James," she smiled. You put your hands on top of mine and then I try to slap yours and you try to not get slapped…get it?"

"No," he laughed, "but let's try it yeah?" He then put his hands on top of hers and she proceeded to slap his hands. He laughed again and they continued the game for a while.

"Anna," James said with his famous James Potter smile, "there' something I have to tell you—" but what James had to tell Anna Lily never found out because she leaned over the table and kissed him. Lily felt her heart plummet to the floor.

-I'm a line break-I'm a break in the line-

Lily sat in the ruby red chair by the fire in the Head's Common room. It wasn't that she liked James, it was just that she wasn't used to him paying attention to other girls is all. He was the one always telling her she was the only girl for him! Where does he get off on lying to her! He just proved her point that he never truly cared for her at all! He was just trying to annoy her through all the years. Lily felt her indignation for James grow. For the second time that day James seemed to appear on command. He walked into the Head's Common room with a stupid smile on his face.

"Stop smiling Potter." Lily snapped.

"What Lily?" He asked confused.

"I told you to wipe that stupid grin off your face. I do not need to see you gloating about your newest conquest, you disgust me." Lily glared.

James did not quell like most people under her most intense glare, but rather rolled his eyes, "what did I did now Lily?"

"Nothing. You did absolutely nothing Potter." Lily spat.

"Well, _Evans,_ I obviously did _something _to annoy you, as you are using my surname. So when you get some maturity maybe we can discuss exactly what I did to bother you so we can solve it like adults." James said messaging his temples as if _she _were giving _him_ the headache! Hah!

"I am mature Potter unlike some people who play silly stupid slap games, I mean really are we eleven years old? If you want to hold hand why don't you be a grown up and just hold her hand?"

"Lily what are you talking about?"

"Nothing, I'm just saying you are the one that needs maturity. And at least I don't lie to people about my feeling telling them how much I love them when I don't really mean it. I mean who does that? Is it fun? Do you enjoy being an annoying stalker? Especially since you had such a find and dandy date with Gorgeous Anna. And really who wants to be tan, blonde, and beautiful—"

"Lily…are you by any chance jealous?"

"Jealous?" Lily asked her voice about two octaves higher than normal. "Why would I be jealous of her she had to go out with an arrogant, bullying, no good, toe-rag like you!"

"Lily, Lily, Lily." James said shaking his finger and smiling knowingly. Lily wanted to slap that smile off his face. "Lily I could never like Anna."

Lily shook her head, she obviously had not heard correctly, "come again?"

"I said I could never _ever_ like Anna!" James said, his hazel eyes showing sincerity, that Lily wasn't apt to believe. James sighed, "you don't believe me? Shall I tell you exactly why I don't like Anna? Anna is…well…Anna's just not my type."

Lily stuck her finger in her ear, because clearly there was something causing her to not hear things properly. "How could you not like her, she's bloody perfect!"

James shrugged, "she might be perfect, but she's not for me."

"Psh!"

"No really Lily, she's not! She doesn't wrinkle her nose when she laughs!" Lily looked at James as if he had grown an extra head.

"You don't like her because she doesn't wrinkle her nose when she laughs?"

"Yeah! And she doesn't hum every morning when she's putting raspberry jam on her dry toast. She doesn't drink pumpkin juice every morning, but water every night. She doesn't stick her tongue out when she's writing an essay, or studying." Lily blushed, this was sounding familiar, " she doesn't have gorgeous auburn hair, or brilliant green eyes that have a spark whenever she yells at me or whenever she thinks she's won an argument. Hell she never yells at me! She doesn't call me on my shit, never puts me in my place. She doesn't try to look disapproving of a Marauder prank while at the same time trying to hold in her laughter. She doesn't have a comeback for everything I say. She doesn't have a smattering of gold freckles on her nose. She doesn't make my hear race every time I look at her, and she definitely doesn't take my breath away every time she smiles. Lily she's not you. She could never be you. She could— no, no one could ever have even one tenth of the power over me as you do. I love you Lily!"

"I…" Lily blinked, "then why did you go on a date with her, if you love me as much as you say?"

James sighed again, " That was Sirius, Remus, and Peter's idea. They said it wasn't healthy to pine after someone for seven years when they would never love me back." James voice cracked.

"Se— seven years?" He had only started to bug her in fifth year.

"Yes seven years. I loved you the moment you walked into Sirius' and my compartment, hell even before that when I heard you talking to Snape about your sister, I knew! I knew that you were the one for me."

"Then…why did you kiss her? Why did you come in smiling?" Lily questioned, but her anger was disapperating fast, soon she'd be out of excuses to hate him…damn!

"Lily if you saw, she tried to kissed me but I stopped her. I explained to her that there was already a girl that was permanently in my heart, and that I was sorry for wasting her time. I was smiling because she told me it was okay and wished me luck in winning her over."

"Oh." Lily said stupidly blinking back tears.

"Lily? Lily sweetheart what's wrong?" James asked as he wrapped his arms around her in a hug. He brushed away a tear with the pad of his thumb and kissed her temple. "shh," he said soothingly. Lily shook her head, she hated James…well the old James…the boy…no man standing in front of her wasn't the old James. He was sweet James, caring James, her James. "What are you crying Lily, please tell me. Just say the word and I'll make sure it'll never be able to cause you pain again."

"James…if…hypothetically I loved you too—"

James pushed her so he could look in her face, "you love me?" he shouted.

Lily laughed, I said hypothetically James!"

"I'll take what I can get," he muttered, but she chose to ignore this.

"If I hypothetically loved you, would you stop chasing after me?"

"No, if you hypothetically loved me I'd hold you and never let you go, "he explained squeezing her for emphasis. "Hypothetically of course."

"And…if I hypothetically kissed you…would you push me away like Anna?"

"Never."

And Lily kissed him. It was like warm butterbeer on a winter day, like lying down on your bed after double potion and double transfiguration, only better one hundred times better. And after moments, or hours, or what could have been days, they finally broke apart.

"Lily Evans, "James said breathlessly, "would you please go out with me?"

"Well…since the Giant Squid is busy…" Lily laughed.

James stuck out his tongue, "Lily? Please?" His eyes bore into her, and all she could do was nod. James whooped and jumped in the air.

"Now come over here and kiss me Potter," Lily demanded.

"Is that an order Evans?" James quipped.

"If it'll make you do it faster." Lily smiled, and then James' lips were on hers once again.


End file.
